


Sanctuary

by QuietDarkness



Series: Simplicity and Complexity (Harrisco) [67]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:14:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25156828
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuietDarkness/pseuds/QuietDarkness
Summary: A dark turn of events lands Maggie in the clutches of Coster. But his plans for her are nothing like anyone could predict. And the reasons for those plans are even more unpredictable. Harry and Cisco remain comatose. And Maggie may have to deal with trauma no one should have to endure.It may all come down to the very matter of the multiverse, and the one who started it all...'Opposites don't just attract. They catch fire and burn the entire city down.'(Part 64)
Relationships: Cisco Ramon/Earth-2 Harrison "Harry" Wells
Series: Simplicity and Complexity (Harrisco) [67]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/695946
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	Sanctuary

**Author's Note:**

> (Happiness is on the horizon, my lovelies! Hang in there! - QD)

_'Yes, you will rise from the ashes. But the burning comes first. For this part, darling, you must be brave...'_

* * *

Maggie was sitting up against a tree at the edge of the field. She’d figured out pretty quickly that the area of the world they were on was all nature and no people, except for the Others of course. She’d also figured out that the farther away from them all that she got, the more tired she felt, not to mention parched and starving. At least she knew the reason why she wasn’t tired or hungry or thirsty anymore. For some reason, all of them being together meant they were impervious to all that. Like they supplied each other with whatever they needed just by being close. It was interesting, and scary because she couldn’t get far without all the needs of a normal human incapacitating her. 

So she sat as far away as she could, far enough to not be near them and the literal field of dead people. But close enough that she didn’t have to worry about collapsing. And there she stayed, till a commotion caught her attention. All the Others seemed to be gathering in the center of the field. They never clumped up like that. Or at least for as long as she’d been around them.

It took some doing, mostly because she really didn’t want to look at any of the dead people as she made her way, but she got to the small crowd, pushing her way through. They were all whispering different things, like, ‘Omega needs us’ and ‘Omega is hurt.’ Omega this and Omega that.  
When she finally saw Omega again, it was not what she’d ever expected. 

The young woman had always seemed so confident, so in control and focused. Seeing her bleeding from her right arm, her face twisted in anger and pain, it was a little sobering. And delightful. Because to Maggie, this meant the bitch could be hurt. And hurt badly. The thought made her laugh out loud. And for some reason, that alone silenced all the Others. They all just stared at her, slightly wide-eyed, as Omega sneered in her direction. “What’s so fucking funny?” She demanded, her voice hoarse like she’d been yelling. Maggie just shrugged.

“Not so invincible after all, huh.” She affirmed flatly. And suddenly Omega was just there, her good hand around Maggie’s throat, squeezing tightly. Maggie instantly felt a strange sensation run through her body, straight to her bones. Not exactly unpleasant, but not exactly nice, either. She gasped, hands coming up and gripping Omega’s arm.

“Your fucking mutt…” Omega stated angrily, getting face to face with Maggie who had a brief moment of clarity. Mutt?

“A-Axiom?” She sputtered out, then smiled again. “Good. I’m glad he got… a bite out of you.” She said between strangled breaths. Omega yelled right in her face, all rage and no control, letting Maggie go so fast that she fell on the ground. The Others stepped back out of the way, creating a sort of semi-circle around them both as Maggie rubbed at her throat, coughing, propping herself up on one arm. “He should have… ripped your throat out.” She glared up at Omega. And for a moment, the rage flashed hard on the other girl’s face. But then slowly, a calm came over her as she cradled her arm against herself.

“Why can’t I heal this?” She demanded firmly. Maggie sat up, smiling, letting her hands fall to her lap.

“Because Axiom isn’t a dog.” She explained, feeling light and happy for the first time in… fuck, she didn’t even know how long. “Which means that’s probably not just any old bite.” She could admit, she was pretty damn happy about that. And it was evident in her voice. Omega shook her head, then looked up at the sky, sighing heavily.

“You shouldn’t sound so smug, ya know.” Omega didn’t look at her, just kept staring up at the clouds overhead. 

“Yeah? I’m not the one who got gnawed on.” She just kept smiling. Couldn’t help it. Didn’t want to stop. But then Omega looked at her, fixing her with a remarkably stone-cold glare that silenced everything in her. It even frightened her. Omega crouched before her, meeting her gaze.  
“You are, however, the one whose Dads are currently on death’s door.” 

Maggie froze. She swallowed down an instant rock in her throat. She sat up a little straighter. She could feel the Others shift around her, like the air had suddenly gotten too thick for even them. “…what?” She whispered, then furrowed her brows, glaring hard. “What the fuck did you do?” She demanded and lurched forward, grabbing Omega by the shirt, yanking her into her frame hard till they were face to face. Omega just chuckled, shrugging.

“Remember that friend of mine? The one who’s been helping me do all this?” She looked around, then yanked herself out of Maggie’s hold, standing back up. “He gave me a little gift. Something that could hurt both of your adopted dads. Something neither one is going to be able to come back from very easily. A little bomb of sorts.” She turned away, pacing to the side, the Others moving like fluid to keep the space even between them and the Omega. 

And Maggie… she just.. couldn’t move. 

Inside, everything burned like acid. Her powers began boiling inside her. Rippling through her flesh. Demanding to be heard, demanding to be used. She got to her feet, the air around her literally crackling, the sky growing dark. But she didn’t notice any of that. She didn’t notice the Others stepping back even further, like they were afraid… _afraid of her_. She didn’t even notice the confusion on Omega’s face as she glanced up at the sky above. 

“How are you doing that?” Omega asked, slightly in awe, looking back at Maggie and just… freezing in place. 

Maggie didn’t even hear her question, didn’t know what she looked like, didn’t know her eyes were pitch black like Harry’s got when he was coming back from nearly dying, didn’t know her skin was littered in black lines like she’d been tattooed in tree roots. All she could hear was the rumbling in her veins. The anger in her body was more like pure hatred, rage real and thick like molasses in her muscles. It hurt, it burned, it urged her on. To release it, to let it all loose, to punish the one who’d dared make her feel this… what was this? Grief? She’d never known grief like this. Never felt anger so caustic. And she didn’t want it. She didn’t want any of it.

So she released it.

It came out of her in one incredible discharge of all kinds of electricity, energy, power. It was practically nuclear. The sky opened with it. Lightning struck to meet it from all directions. The Others around her screamed, their own energy dragging out of their bodies to connect with hers. And it was like they fed her. She didn’t know where it was all coming from, didn’t care. She sucked that new resource dry and pushed it all back out… straight at Omega… straight at the one who had dared to hurt her, hurt her family… her Harry… her Cisco… her everything…

She just let it all go, let it consume everything around her, let it swallow Omega whole, let it take with it all the pain and anger and heartache and sorrow and fear she’d felt for… she just didn’t know how long. She released every last bit, every last drop until there was nothing left to give.  
And down she went. Down, down, down. Falling forever, it felt like. Till she was on her back, staring up at a suddenly very clear sky. Surrounded by nothing but empty silence and a terrible, withering pain in her bones. A scream tore from her throat, filling the emptiness around her, forcing what air she had in her lungs all the way out. And then… nothing.

Absolutely nothing as tears rolled down her face, her skin returned to normal, her eyes were back to hazel. And for the first time since all this began, she was utterly and truly alone…

* * *

He watched it all. 

And none of it, not a single damn second of it, was half of what he’d expected. To say he was delightfully surprised was a bit of an understatement. But he was also really confused. And somewhat angry. Because this was… well, fuck. Why’d this keep happening? What was so fucking special about this lot? First the Elemental and the Bright-Breacher, now this?

He felt a sigh ripple through him as he stepped around all the bodies. There were nearly fifty more to add to the pile. Well, minus one. Omega was nothing. Less than nothing now. Evaporated. Poof. Dust to dust, and all that. 

He stopped just before Maggie. She’d curled in on herself, practically in a fetal position. Her eyes were closed. Kid probably sobbed herself into unconsciousness. He stared at her for a long moment. And for all intents and purposes, she just looked like all the other useless Maggies he’d found for this little experiment. But he knew better now. 

Sure, part of this was to make Harry and Cisco suffer. To wear them down a bit. To see how much grief those two could actually take. When Omega, a ridiculous name really, asked for his help in getting rid of them, well… he couldn’t really decline. He didn’t want them dead, not really. Not yet, anyway. But hurt? Dancing near death’s door? Sure. He didn’t mind that in the least. At least there, they couldn’t be any trouble. And he could take more of his sweet time.

Or so was the plan, till _this_ one decided to be waaaaay more interesting.

He crouched down beside her, reaching forward and poking her in the forehead hard. Her whole body jerked rigidly, eyes flying open as she gasped. Then her face crinkled in pain as she rolled onto her back again, hugging herself. “Well, well. Look who finally decided to wake up.” He smiled lightly, hands hanging between his knees. She blinked, fresh tears rolling down her cheeks like she really was in a great deal of pain. Probably from releasing all that energy out of herself. He looked her over, watching her gasp lightly with every little movement. He let his vision shift, let his senses flow over her. 

Broken bones. Lots of them. Hm. He inhaled and let it out slowly. “Alright, alright.” He muttered, reaching forward and placing a palm flat on her abdomen. She cried out instantly. She was no good to him if she couldn’t move, after all. It only took a few moments to heal her completely. She’d probably be sore for a bit. But at least her bones weren’t swimming around her insides. She blinked at him warily, pushing up on her elbows, looking down the length of her body.

“Coster…” she cleared her throat a little, pushing up more and standing stiffly. “Why’d you do that?” She asked tentatively, hands smoothing down her stomach. He stood, slipping his hands into his pockets, towering over her shorter stature. She stepped back a little, refusing to take her eyes off him. She looked like a dog who’d been kicked one too many times. He shook his head at her, frowning a little.

“Does it matter? It’s done.” He remarked, studying her face. She glanced warily away from him then, her tired hazel eyes roaming around them. Slowly, tears fell down her cheeks again. Though he had a distinct feeling it had nothing to do with physical pain. 

“I… I did this?” She whispered, looking at all the dead Maggies around them. “How?” She asked herself more than him as she turned tiredly on her feet. 

“And here I was hoping you could answer that.” Great. Just… great. She looked back at him, mouth shut and jaw clenching. “You’re not going to be much help, are you.” He stated, then cast his gaze skyward for a brief moment. “Fine. Let’s go.” And he snapped his fingers. Everything shifted around them from dead Maggie filled field to black haze to an empty room. Maggie’s empty room.

She fell to her knees, breathing heavily and wide-eyed. And then she retched, puked her guts out. Not that she had really anything in there to puke. Coster curled a lip and stepped back. “Really?” He growled out, putting distance between himself and her. When it seemed she was done, he just waited for her to look at him again. “Finally. Fuck.” He groused. “Are you always so sensitive?” She wiped an arm across her mouth, falling to her rear, looking… wrung out and impossibly exhausted. 

“How… how did we get here?” She asked. Stupid question. He sighed in annoyance.

“Let’s cut to the chase, shall we?” He crouched again, meeting her blood shot gaze. “Fact of the matter is, you screwed up my experiment with your rather remarkable display of power. Power, I’ll point out, that is only seen in the likes of your two annoying as fuck fathers.”

“My…” she paused entirely, something coming over her features and she sat straighter, like she was going to bolt out the door. He reached forward and grabbed her shoulder hard, making her gasp, making sure she didn’t even think about leaving. She stared at him firmly, breathing in and letting the air out slow. “You let Omega try to kill them.” Coster smiled lightly.

“Looks like you got some fight left in you after all, hm?” He let her shoulder go. This time she just sat there. Smart. “You’re Gaia-borne, like they are. Care to tell me how that’s possible?” He stood up then, pacing toward the window and peering momentarily at the very dark world outside. “How is it three Gaia-borne’s are on the same Earth, in the same city… same damn family?” He looked back at the confusion on her face and turned, sitting his rear on the sill and crossing his arms over his chest. “Who is pulling all these strings?”

“I don’t understand. I’m not…” she shook her head a little, “I’m just me.” Her voice sounded wholly unsure, like she was probably still trying to come to terms with everything that had happened to her.

“Nope. You’re not _just you._ ” He replied sarcastically. “Listen, kid… whoever brought you three together? They did it on purpose, for a reason. And I would really, really like to know what that is.” He narrowed his eyes on her, watching her swallow and hug herself like a shiver ran through her. He nodded quietly. “Which is why I’m going to let you go.” She obviously hadn’t expected that because her brows went up and her mouth opened slightly.

“What?” She choked out, dropping her arms. “You’re… just like that?” Her whisper was harsh, angry. She got to her feet, hands in fists at her sides despite the fine, exhausted tremble that was running through every one of her muscles. “Why? After all… after… what was the point of it all?!” She yelled, taking a step forward. Definitely a fighter, this one. “All those people… those… those Others, they’re dead! Because of you!” She yelled some more. He chuckled, then stood to his full height. She stepped right back. Very smart.

“Those metas?” he reached forward, gripping both of her shoulders as gently as he dared. “They’re waste product. You’re lucky you aren’t like them.” He winked at her, and the look she gave him was all hatred. “It’s time for you to go, little spitfire. I’ve got research to do. And those dads of yours… well…” he shrugged, letting her shoulders go, “You may want to think about how you’re going to help them.” And he snapped his fingers before she could do or say anything else. 

The room was empty again except for him. He glanced down at the puke on the rug, mostly bile. “Three of them.” He stated to no one, looking around and slipping his hands into his pockets. “I know you’re watching… listening, whatever you are. Whoever you are.” He turned in a slow circle. “I’ll get you to show yourself. Just wait.” 

A moment later, the room was void of life again. Only a subtle breeze wafted in from the still open window, the sound of a single car passing by as Coster too disappeared…

* * *

_-Audio Log, Maggie King-_

__

__

_-soft music is heard in the background, the shifting of bedsprings, then a soft sigh-_

_When I was a little girl, I used to sneak out of the orphanage at night. There was this little brook that ran by the other side of the railroad tracks. It would bubble over all these old bricks, and down into this sort of hollowed out pit where tar used to be. I’d follow the water, all the way down where I could sit on this really old tire and dip my feet into the water. I didn’t even care if the water was dirty, I just wanted to feel it running over my skin. I’d point my flashlight on the current and watch it change shape. It always flowed more after it rained, and I used to pretend it was a river, and I would get a boat and it would carry me away from the city. Far, far away. I’d end up at some farm, and a nice young couple would be there. See, they’d be praying for a little girl. And then, poof! There I’d be! It was a stupid idea, honestly. But when I felt my worst, it was probably the only good thing I had to hold on to._

_-a pause, a clearing of someone’s throat-_

_As I got older, I didn’t get to go to the brook as much. Life got… so much harder, especially when I realized I was a meta. I didn’t really have time for daydreaming or wishes that wouldn’t come true. But there was one day… it had rained really hard and I’d already been sick for days. But for some reason, I just really wanted to go back there, ya know? Just to see if it would make me feel better. Even if just for a few minutes.  
-a click was heard, the music stopping-_

_It was the most wonderful thing. The brook? It was fenced in, all the trash cleaned out of the water, and there were these flowers everywhere, on both sides. And all this grass. Like someone had taken a lot of time to clean it up and turn it into a little park. There was even a bench where the tire used to be. For a minute, I even thought I was in the wrong place._

_But I sat down on the bench and took off my sneakers and socks and stuck my feet in the water. And I heard this soft laugh. Really gentle, ya know? And then this woman came over and sat beside me. She was so… pretty. Her hair was in a million braids, pulled up in this high ponytail and her skin was so dark and clear. Her smile was gorgeous, like it was all she ever did. Just smile, ya know? And she smelled like vanilla. I remember that smell._

_-another pause-_

_She told me she’d been waiting for me. That she’d done all that for me… turned the brook into a nice place to be. She said that she used to see me from far away, coming here all alone, pretending it was a far better place than it had been. And she wanted it to be that better place for me. I remember feeling really stunned, and kind of suspicious. But she laughed again, this really sweet laugh. The kind that you can’t help but smile at. I asked her why she would do all this if she didn’t even know me. She just patted my knee and said that there was good coming my way, it would take a little time. But until I found it, this place would be there._

_-a pause and a shuffling of something fabric-_

_She stood up and then disappeared. And I mean… disappeared. As in, I turned around and she was just gone. Like she’d never even been there. I wasn’t even startled. I should have been. Because it was just really strange. But… I felt safe. I felt happy, even. For the first time in a really long time, I felt like everything was going to be okay._

_-a gentle laugh-_

_Two weeks later, I met Harry and Cisco. Turns out that lady was right. I haven’t been back to that brook since. I probably should… just to see if it’s still like I remember it. But… I think it’s kind of unnecessary. Because I don’t need it anymore. I got my happy ever after. I got my loving parents. And there may not be a boat or a farm involved, but… this is better. This is better than anything I could have ever imagined._

_-pause-_

_I wonder if that lady knows how right she was…_

_-end audio log-_

* * *

She woke with a start, cringing at the sudden heavy feel of every muscle, the aching in every joint. She breathed in deeply, lungs expanding and the air coming back out shaken and hesitant. Blinking, she brought a hand up to her forehead. It was dim, the lights dulled above her. And there was a soft beeping. The feeling of warmth, like blankets… she dropped her hand and looked around. 

“Oh my god…” she whispered, her voice catching. And instantly she found herself sobbing. Because she was in the medlab. She was in a gurney in the medlab in S.T.A.R. Labs. Which meant she was home!

“Maggie?” Caitlin’s sweet voice met her ears and she sobbed again, she just couldn’t help it. She reached for Caitlin the moment she saw her, hands shaking, arms protesting, but she didn’t care. Caitlin moved into her, soothing a hand around her back and one into her hair. “Sshh, I’ve got you. It’s okay, sweety. You’re okay.” Her words, her voice just made Maggie cry harder. She didn’t know how she got there. She didn’t remember anything after Coster snapped his fingers. And honestly, right that moment? She just did… not… care. She clung to Caitlin with what little strength she had, afraid it was all a dream. Afraid that if she let go, she’d be back in hell. But eventually, her sobs turned into shuddered breaths as Caitlin laid her back down. Though thankfully, the gentle woman didn’t leave her side. “Do you hurt anywhere?” she finally asked, still stroking Maggie’s hair with such softness that it almost made Maggie want to cry more.

“I… I’m just weak… I think.” She said honestly. She didn’t hurt anymore. Not like she had before Coster healed her. She was just exhausted in a way she’d never felt and couldn’t understand. “How did I get here?” Her voice wasn’t very loud, she realized. Not exactly whispering, but not exactly talking, either. Like even the muscles in her throat were sore. Caitlin smiled softly.

“We aren’t sure.” She stepped slightly to the side, turning a monitor and looking at it for a moment. “You just showed up in the Cortex, unconscious.” She looked back at her kindly. God, so much kindness. It made Maggie’s throat catch again. Caitlin shook her head a little and began stroking Maggie’s hair again. “You’re dehydrated, somewhat malnourished. And you’re suffering from severe exhaustion. I’m honestly surprised you’re even awake right now.”

Maggie closed her eyes for a moment, reveling in the feel of Caitlin’s hand in her hair. She hadn’t felt something so gentle in… she opened her eyes. “How long?” She asked, catching Caitlin’s raised brow and clearing her throat a little. “How long have I been gone?” Caitlin blinked a little, her expression turning to slightly sad.

“Almost a month.” She said quietly. Maggie let out an exasperated sound, raising a hand and clutching her chest as more tears threatened to pour out. A month? A whole… month. “You’ve been through a lot, sweety. You don’t need to do any of this now.”

“Wait,” she startled, realizing something as she looked around quickly. At the side and foot of her gurney were white separator curtains, blocking her view from the rest of the medlab. “Where are my Dads?!” she demanded, her soft voice urgent as she tried to sit up. Caitlin forced her to wait and brought up the back of her bed instead, which she was grateful for. “Are they here? Tell me they’re okay!” Caitlin looked past her then, staring at the separator. Then she cleared her throat a little. 

“Listen to me, Maggie.” She sat down on the edge of the bed, taking one of Maggie’s hands in her own. “A lot has happened to you. A lot that you need to recover from, okay? Right now, that’s all I want you to focus on. Nothing else.” Her voice was still kind, but stern somehow. 

“What’s wrong?” Maggie whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks, fear building in her chest. “Please, Caitlin… please tell me.” She shuddered a breath, “I know Coster made Omega do something to them.”

“Omega?” Caitlin raised a brow. Maggie nodded.

“The leader of… of all the Others… the Maggies.” She explained, holding her gaze. Caitlin nodded in understanding.

“We called them the Hive… and her the Queen.” She sighed gently then, reaching one hand up to stroke Maggie’s hair completely out of her face. “But none of that matters right now. Okay?” She smiled a little sadly. “I know you’re worried. I can see you’re scared. But you have to trust me, Maggie.” But Maggie shook her head, pulling her hand away from Caitlin, hugging herself slightly.

“I know you’re just trying to protect me, and I appreciate it.” She got out, sniffling lightly, tears still falling. “But they’re my Dads…” she practically begged. Caitlin took in a breath, looking past her again. Then she nodded, standing up and moving around the bed, grabbing the end of the separator and folding it away. What Maggie saw was both of her Dads on gurneys of their own, bruised, pale, unconscious. Her hands came up to her face as a sob broke out of her mouth, eyes just pouring tears. And Caitlin was back at her side, holding her. She just let her, let Caitlin take all the tears she had to give. Because it was too much. 

Everything that had happened to her, what Omega had done to them, what Coster had done put them all through… how was any of this fair? What had they ever done to deserve any of this?!

She wasn’t sure how long she cried for, clinging to Caitlin like a life preserver. She’d learned to stop counting minutes awhile ago. But then she was blinking heavily across the room, relaxed back into her bed as Caitlin stood up and pulled her blanket up over her tired form some more.  
“What’s wrong with them?” she asked tiredly. 

“They’re comatose.” Caitlin responded, no longer trying to keep the truth from her. “Their brains were put through a sort of sensory overload. Their nerves…” she cleared her throat and slipped her hands into the pockets of her white lab coat. “Physically, they’ll recover. But it’s going to take time. And…” she shook her head, watching as Maggie turned her head to look at her. “I can’t tell you if they’ll wake up or not, Maggie. I’m doing everything I can, I promise you that. Axiom is already awake, and Harry seems to be recovering a little bit quicker now.” She looked over at them. “It’s just… they need time.” She looked back at Maggie, touching her hair. “So do you.”

Time. She’d lost so much time. With her Dads. With Axiom. With everyone. Even with herself. She closed her eyes then, clutching at the blankets, the urge to cry settled beneath the surface of her lungs. She had a feeling it would be that way for awhile. She could feel sleep weighing heavily on her. She didn’t even feel herself relax. “I’m sorry…” she whispered to her Dads, not caring if Caitlin heard. “I’m so sorry.” 

And then sleep came, stealing more of her time…

* * *

“Hello, little one.” 

_That voice, Maggie knew that voice. And that smell. And this place._

“How’d I…” _she began, but paused in her confusion, looking down to see her feet in the cool water of the brook, feeling the bench beneath her. She gazed around at a clear blue sky and a stretch of grass with flowers to either side._ “Okay, I’m dreaming.” _Had to be. That gentle laugh was heard beside her as the woman sat down, her brightly colored purple dress tucked beneath her legs as she relaxed back. Her braided black hair was up in that ponytail high on her head, and her dark skin nearly shined in the sunlight._

“You are definitely dreaming. But it doesn’t mean that we aren’t here.” _She motioned out in front of them, but Maggie couldn’t stop looking at her. She looked exactly the same. Hadn’t aged a day. In fact, she looked far more ethereal and beautiful than before. The woman’s dark eyes turned to her, that perfect and glorious smile spreading._ “I’ve been watching, my darling, like I always have.” _She curled an arm around Maggie’s shoulders, pulling her warmly into her side as she looked back out over the brook._ “I’ve been watching all of you.”

“Who are you?” _Maggie asked, her voice calm and at ease despite every reason she should have been otherwise. The woman momentarily nodded, stroking Maggie’s arm lightly._

“I have many names. Most of them I’m not sure you can pronounce.” _She glanced sideways at Maggie with a wink. And for some reason, Maggie just had to smile._ “What would you like to call me?”

“Oh, I… I don’t know.” _She sounded sheepish, even to herself. But she shrugged lightly, looking down at the water as it ran over her feet._ “Maybe… Brook?” _Sheesh, that wasn’t a terrible name at all, right? She could have kicked herself. But the woman laughed lightly._

“A wonderful choice, little one.” _She squeezed Maggie’s arm gently._ “Brook it is, then.”

“That still doesn’t really tell me who you are, though.” _Maggie looked back out at the flowers, watched them swaying in a gentle breeze, all those colors and types making the air smell just lovely when mixed with the vanilla scent of the woman beside her._

“You’re right, it doesn’t, does it?” _She asked humorously._ “I suppose you could say I’m your mother, in a way. I’m the mother of everyone and everything, in fact.” _Maggie furrowed her brows a little, pausing the swaying of her feet in the water._ “The Multiverse? That’s my creation.”

“So…” _Maggie looked at her profile,_ “You’re like a god… or something?” _Brook laughed at that, the same wonderful laugh that Maggie was really beginning to love already. It made her smile._

“Just another name, my dear.” _She winked._ “All things start somewhere. All worlds. All people. You started from a thought, many millions of years ago. When a snap of my fingers,” _she snapped the fingers of her free hand for emphasis,_ “Made this world appear. Everything and everyone,” _she put her hand over where her heart would be,_ “Came from here.”

“Okay…” _Maggie didn’t dispute it. Didn’t even try. There was something about Brook, something about her words that told her it was all true. She should have been awed by the fact that she was, in fact, sitting next to a literal goddess. But she was just comfortable. At ease. Safe._ “Why are you talking to me? I mean, there’re so many worlds and so many people in them. Why me?”

“You always ask the right questions.” _She was smiling brightly again._ “You and your fathers? I believe you would call yourselves Gaia-borne. I simply call you my Special Ones.” _Brook glanced up at the sky,_ “To be fair, you’re all quite special. But you three, and others like you? You each carry a literal piece of me inside of you.” _She looked back at Maggie, then pointed at Maggie’s chest._ “Right there, in fact.”

“Coster… he was angry about that. About us three being on the same Earth. He seemed really confused about that.” _Maggie remarked, part of her rational mind still trying to make sense of all this. It was absurd, really. But it was true. She didn’t know how she knew, but it was._

“Ah, well… Coster is something else altogether. Darkness, like Harry’s, is innately good. But Darkness like Coster’s? Such Evil is an unfortunate affect of creation, I’m afraid. He wants the power you three have for himself. And wants me to give it to him. But he doesn’t quite understand what he is asking for. You three? You were born with part of me. Coster was… made the way he is.”

“But why bring us together? I know the whole thing about… how soulmates are supposed to be from the same universe. But Harry and Cisco… they’re from different universes.” _Maggie went back to watching the water, listening._

“I love how bright you are, Maggie. You’re right. That is one of the more… irrefutable laws of the multiverse. But the best thing about those laws?” _She let out a happy sigh._ “I can break them if I want to.” _Brook stood then, slipping away from Maggie and stepping straight into the water, holding her skirts up higher as her feet disappeared into the current._ “I brought the three of you together because, quite simply,” _She looked over her shoulder at Maggie,_ “The multiverse is changing, at breakneck speed. And though there are indeed many, many Earths,” _she looked down at her feet in the water,_ “This Earth? It was the first I created. It holds a very special place in my ancient heart. And it needs my Special Ones to keep it from falling apart under the weight of all these changes.”

_Maggie didn’t try to contemplate how old Brook truly was. Or how selfish it seemed to care about one Earth more than the others. Because if all this really was real, Brook didn’t owe anyone a reason. She’d created them, right? But Maggie found herself frowning._

“My Dads… they’re…” _she didn’t finish the sentence, still watching Brook’s feet in the water. The woman turned a little to face her._

“I know, my dear. I know. You have all suffered so much.” _There was genuine regret and sorrow in her voice, pulling Maggie’s eyes up to her own. Then Brook bent over, hooking a gentle finger beneath Maggie’s chin._ “There is a way to things. A balance that must be upheld. To bring you three together, dark and terrible things happened to maintain that balance. But know this,” _she stood then, stepping back a little, letting her skirts fall into the water around her,_ “Coster will get what is truly coming to him. And all that awful sorrow you’ve felt? It ends now. Things are about to get better, little one. All I need from you?” _She motioned around her with sweeping arcs from her arms, laughing as she kicked water up, splashing some of it on Maggie who couldn’t help but laugh a little. Then she dropped her hands, smiling brightly._ “Hold on, just a little while longer.”

_And then Brook was gone. And Maggie was alone. Or maybe… maybe not so alone. She smiled down at her feet in the water. If this was a dream, it was a damn good one. One she couldn’t wait to share with Harry and Cisco. Now, all she had to do… was wake up…_

**Author's Note:**

> (To be continued...)


End file.
